Yuvak Mandal Twenty/20 Cricket Tournament, UK & Europe

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Leicester and South A triumphed in the inaugural Yuvak Mandal outdoor BAPS Twenty/20 cricket tournament held at Warren Farm, London on Saturday 2 August 2008. The competition was the first of its kind and was inaugurated by former Indian spin bowler Nilesh Kulkarni along with the sadhus.

Despite the mixture of sunshine and showers, the event proved an overwhelming success as 11 teams from across the UK participated.

The competition format included initial knockout round matches, after which the competition was divided into two, where the winners in round 1 progress to the main “BAPS Twenty/20 Trophy” whilst a further opportunity was provided for the runner-up teams to compete in the “BAPS Twenty/20 Plate” tournament.

The highlight of the first round was the colossal total of 202 amassed by Finchley from their tie against Birmingham in a match reduced to 15 overs due to rain. The individual performance of the day was provided by Yagnesh Bhatt of Ashton, whose majestic century from a 10-over match caught the eyes of the spectators. Pravinbhai of East London produced a stunning display of bowling, capturing four wickets in one over.

The semi-final between two of the tournament’s favourites, Leicester & Harrow A was very close with Leicester needing 5 runs off the last over. Leicester triumphed, but only just – with one ball to spare.

Following a series of exciting matches, the two finals provided further drama. Leicester recorded a comfortable victory against Finchley in the BAPS Twenty/20 Trophy Final, chasing a target of 109 with three overs to spare. The BAPS Twenty/20 Plate Final proved another one-sided contest as South A cruised to victory against Birmingham.

The individual accolade of ‘player-of-the-tournament’ was awarded to Tejalbhai of Finchley in the BAPS Twenty/20 Trophy. Tejalbhai and Manojbhai of Finchley were voted as the best batsman and best bowler respectively of the Trophy tournament. Partheshbhai of South A was awarded ‘player of the tournament’ in the BAPS Twenty/20 Plate. Partheshbhai also claimed the honour of best batsman in the Plate tournament with Piyushbhai of South A claiming the best bowler award.